The ''#mythtv-users'' channel on freenode.net is usually the fastest way to get help about problems with MythTV.

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The ''#mythtv-users'' channel on irc.freenode.net is usually the fastest way to get help about problems with MythTV.

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A daily chat log is kept at [http://mythtv.beirdo.ca/ircLog/channel/1/history mythtv.beirdo.ca]

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A daily chat log is kept at [http://irc.mythtv.org/ircLog/channel/1/history irc.mythtv.org]

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====#mythtv====

====#mythtv====

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The ''#mythtv'' channel on freenode.net is for '''developer discussions only'''.

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The ''#mythtv'' channel on irc.freenode.net is for '''developer discussions only'''.

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A daily chat log is kept at [http://irc.mythtv.org/ircLog/channel/4/history irc.mythtv.org]

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====#mythtv-theming====

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A channel devoted to theming and improvement of the Myth user interface.

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A daily chat log is kept at [http://irc.mythtv.org/ircLog/channel/3/history irc.mythtv.org]

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====#ubuntu-mythtv====

====#ubuntu-mythtv====

All about mythbuntu

All about mythbuntu

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A daily chat log is kept at [http://irclogs.ubuntu.com/ irclogs.ubuntu.com]

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====#ubuntu-mythtv-dev====

====#ubuntu-mythtv-dev====

Developer talk about mythbuntu

Developer talk about mythbuntu

== Channel FAQ / Rules ==

== Channel FAQ / Rules ==

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=== General Behavior ===

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We are trying very hard to keep our IRC channels as newbie and family-friendly venues. To this end there are minimum expectations of your behavior on these channels

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* Read the topic! It has important information

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* Be civil to others.

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* No name calling or other abusing of other channel participants

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* No profanity or foul language.

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If you will not behave, you very likely will be banned from the channels in question.

=== Should I ask if I can ask a question? ===

=== Should I ask if I can ask a question? ===

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=== Why is everyone being so rude/brusque/direct? ===

=== Why is everyone being so rude/brusque/direct? ===

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That's just the way most geeks are. Especially when asked questions in silly ways, or even worse, stupid questions. Don't take it personally, just adjust.

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The official channel policy is to treat all people with respect. It is possible that you were politely referred to the wiki, documentation, or to another channel. If, however, you were treated rudely, sworn at, or called names, that ''is'' a violation of the channel rules which will not be tolerated. It is appropriate to bring such rude or disparaging behavior to the attention of any active channel operator.

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For further insight, see

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[http://catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html How to ask smart questions]. This essay is a great read, and by reading it you will be able to help us help you better.

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Also see [http://ars.userfriendly.org/cartoons/?id=20041201 User-Friendly] for December 1, 2004. This is instructive while also funny.

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=== Should I ask this question on #mythtv or #mythtv-users? ===

=== Should I ask this question on #mythtv or #mythtv-users? ===

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=== Is project X better then mythtv? ===

=== Is project X better then mythtv? ===

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Really now, we're in a mythtv channel, we wouldn't be in there if we didn't like the project. Asking us to compare myth with other projects is uesless, because if we felt there was something better, we would be using it. Google can answer your question much better then us.

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Really now, we're in a mythtv channel, we wouldn't be in there if we didn't like the project. Asking us to compare myth with other projects is useless, because if we felt there was something better, we would be using it. Google can answer your question much better then us.

==Legally-Dubious Content==

==Legally-Dubious Content==

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The IRC channel is meant for legal discourse. We do not know who is watching, and we don't want to potentially cause legal problems for the development team. For this reason, anything that is illegal or even potentially illegal isn't welcome on #mythtv-users. This specifically includes things that may be contested as being DMCA violations.

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The IRC channel is meant for legal discourse, MythTV does not exist to enable illegal activities and discussion of such is off-topic. We do not know who is watching, and we don't want to potentially cause legal problems for the development team by linking their work to illegal mis-use. For this reason, anything that is illegal or even potentially illegal isn't welcome in any official MythTV IRC channel, [[Mailing_List_etiquette|mailing list]], or other venue. This specifically includes things that may be contested as being DMCA violations. Failure to abide by these rules or discussion of the subjects below may result in being '''kicked or banned'''.

===Bittorrent===

===Bittorrent===

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While bittorrent in and of itself is not legally troubling, we need to be very careful about the image we portray to the rest of the world. This is all the more important after the [http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/30/arts/television/30manl.html?ex=1264741200&en=e82b9db497df2928&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland New York Times article] which inappropriately lumped MythTV in with the show-sharing types out there.

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While bittorrent in and of itself is not legally troubling, 99.9% of bittorrent traffic is illegal and there is almost no legal video content which can't be sourced by other means. So it's not unreasonable to say that adding a bittorrent client to MythTV would solely be for the facilitation of piracy.

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So, please.... If you are going to be discussing bittorrent, go elsewhere, not on #mythtv-users. (Hint: private messages do work on IRC). We have no idea who is watching and what conclusions they may draw from our actions.

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We need to be very careful about the image we portray to the rest of the world. This is all the more important after the [http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/30/arts/television/30manl.html?ex=1264741200&en=e82b9db497df2928&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland New York Times article] which inappropriately lumped MythTV in with the show-sharing types out there.

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So, please '''do not''' discuss it in any official MythTV IRC channel, [[Mailing_List_etiquette|mailing list]], or other venue. We have no idea who is watching and what conclusions they may draw from your actions. Failure to abide by this rule may result in a '''permanent ban'''.

===Softcam===

===Softcam===

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Specifically, the use of softcam to decrypt DVB signals is not a welcome topic in #mythtv-users. This is due to it being a potential DMCA (legal) violation in the USA and a violation of the Terms and Conditions for almost every service provider no matter where you live. As the main developers of MythTV are in the USA, we must respect their wishes, and keep the legal stink off MythTV caused by these potential DMCA violations. If you wish to discuss the use of softcam, do it elsewhere. You will be kicked if not banned should you persist. You have been warned.

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Specifically, the use of softcam to decrypt DVB signals or for card sharing is not a welcome topic in any official MythTV IRC channel, [[Mailing_List_etiquette|mailing list]], or other venue. This is due to it being a potential DMCA (legal) violation in the USA and a violation of the Terms and Conditions for almost every service provider no matter where you live. As the main developers of MythTV are in the USA, we must respect their wishes, and keep the legal stink off MythTV caused by these potential DMCA violations. If you wish to discuss the use of softcam, do it elsewhere. You will be '''kicked''' and may be '''permanently banned''' should you persist. You have been warned.

===Linking===

===Linking===

We don't mind our users linking to sites to help people, but we do mind linking to potentially copyrighted content. If it's not explicitly marked as free to share, please do not link to it. This includes shows on youtube or other video sharing networks.

We don't mind our users linking to sites to help people, but we do mind linking to potentially copyrighted content. If it's not explicitly marked as free to share, please do not link to it. This includes shows on youtube or other video sharing networks.

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===Terms of Service / Acceptable Use Violations===

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+

We do not tolerate discussions of violating the Terms of Service (ToS) or Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) or similar policies of other sites. If a topic of discussion comes up that seems to be infringing on the ToS/AUP of a third-party site, the discussion must be taken off the IRC channels.

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The reasoning for this is that we do not desire MythTV to be viewed as a project that is promoting nefarious or unethical use of other sites resources. There are potential legal ramifications to this, and the developers do *NOT* support these violations, and do not wish the project to be tainted with the image that these violations bring with them.

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In particular, discussion of violating the ToS of TMS/Zap2it or Microsoft's MCE data service (which is derived from TMS data) or any other online source of TMS-derived scheduling data is not tolerated. For this scheduling data, we use Schedules Direct (at a very reasonable cost to the end user) which legally licenses this data, and do not tolerate discussion of obtaining this scheduling data outside of this method.

==Popular Clients==

==Popular Clients==

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*[http://www.mozilla.org/projects/rt-messaging/chatzilla/ ChatZilla]

*[http://www.mozilla.org/projects/rt-messaging/chatzilla/ ChatZilla]

*[http://www.opera.com/ Opera]

*[http://www.opera.com/ Opera]

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*[http://ww.xchat.org/ XChat]

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*[http://www.xchat.org/ XChat]

==External Links==

==External Links==

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*http://www.irchelp.org/

*http://www.irchelp.org/

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[[Category:Knowledge Base]][[Category:Glossary]]

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[[Category:Glossary]]

Revision as of 16:51, 5 August 2012

Internet Relay Chat (IRC) is a form of real-time Internet chat or synchronous conferencing. It is mainly designed for group (many-to-many) communication in discussion forums called channels, but also allows one-to-one communication and data transfers via private message.[1]

#ubuntu-mythtv

#ubuntu-mythtv-dev

Channel FAQ / Rules

General Behavior

We are trying very hard to keep our IRC channels as newbie and family-friendly venues. To this end there are minimum expectations of your behavior on these channels

Read the topic! It has important information

Be civil to others.

No name calling or other abusing of other channel participants

No profanity or foul language.

If you will not behave, you very likely will be banned from the channels in question.

Should I ask if I can ask a question?

Please don't. If you can't ask a question, asking a question already gets you in trouble, otherwise it's just a waste of time, so just ask your question and see if people answer.

How can I get an answer to my question?

Well, you're reading this FAQ, so you're either off to a good start, or someone pointed out your bad start.

The documentation or project FAQ is a great place to look for answers. People will point you here from IRC, so check there first.

Use Google. Search for anything that seems related to your error. The exact error message often yeilds a hit to a mailing list archive, which brings us to our next point:

There is a mythtv-users mailing list archive; somebody has nearly always had a similar problem and posted their solution.

Finally, there is IRC. If you have tried the above, and still can't find the answer you can see if anybody in channel can answer your question. Always wait a few minutes between joining the channel and asking your question. There may be something else already happening in channel. You should wait even if what is happening doesn't seem related to MythTV. Interrupting people is only going to make them less likely to want to help you with your question.

Should you decide not to follow these steps, you will likely end up back here reading the very next question.

Why is everyone being so rude/brusque/direct?

The official channel policy is to treat all people with respect. It is possible that you were politely referred to the wiki, documentation, or to another channel. If, however, you were treated rudely, sworn at, or called names, that is a violation of the channel rules which will not be tolerated. It is appropriate to bring such rude or disparaging behavior to the attention of any active channel operator.

Should I ask this question on #mythtv or #mythtv-users?

If your question is directly related to the development of MythTV (especially if you are a developer of MythTV) then #mythtv is possibly the correct venue for your question. Please note that the developers don't particularly like having people interrupting them with questions that don't belong in their channel, so if you are off-topic, expect to get snapped at. Typically there are a number of developers that hang out in #mythtv-users, and if they can help you out, they will, so there is no use in asking in both channels.

If your question is a user-support issue (e.g. "I can't get this to work" or "Can you help me with...") go to #mythtv-users. If your question can't be answered by the people there, try again later when other people are on. If it still can't be answered, your best bet is to ask on the mythtv-users
mailing list, which you will need to subscribe to first.

Why am I getting yelled at for pasting my logs into the channel?

The short answer is, if it's 3 or more lines long, use a pastebin.

Go to http://pastebin.ca/
put your content into the box
hit submit
you get a url, paste the url into the channel with a short description of what you're asking about, and you're more likely to get a proper response to your question.

Also keep in mind, a lot of the time a short log snippet isn't enough. It's better to post a full log and say, "Lines x to y look wrong because of z, can someone take a look", and you'll likely get better answers.

How can I get Gentoo/Fedora Core/Ubuntu/etc to do un-MythTV-related things?

While it is possible that there are people in #mythtv-users who can answer these questions, it is not the correct place for general Linux support. There are channels on irc.freenode.net for most of the mainstream distributions. Try asking in the appropriate channel for your distro.

Alternatively, find someone in #mythtv-users who knows your distro, and communicate with them in private messages rather than in the channel.

Unrelated, distro-specific stuff in #mythtv-users is annoying to everyone else who either doesn't use your distro or doesn't have problems with your distro. If it isn't MythTV-related, don't be surprised if you are asked to move it elsewhere.

Is project X better then mythtv?

Really now, we're in a mythtv channel, we wouldn't be in there if we didn't like the project. Asking us to compare myth with other projects is useless, because if we felt there was something better, we would be using it. Google can answer your question much better then us.

Legally-Dubious Content

The IRC channel is meant for legal discourse, MythTV does not exist to enable illegal activities and discussion of such is off-topic. We do not know who is watching, and we don't want to potentially cause legal problems for the development team by linking their work to illegal mis-use. For this reason, anything that is illegal or even potentially illegal isn't welcome in any official MythTV IRC channel, mailing list, or other venue. This specifically includes things that may be contested as being DMCA violations. Failure to abide by these rules or discussion of the subjects below may result in being kicked or banned.

Bittorrent

While bittorrent in and of itself is not legally troubling, 99.9% of bittorrent traffic is illegal and there is almost no legal video content which can't be sourced by other means. So it's not unreasonable to say that adding a bittorrent client to MythTV would solely be for the facilitation of piracy.

We need to be very careful about the image we portray to the rest of the world. This is all the more important after the New York Times article which inappropriately lumped MythTV in with the show-sharing types out there.

So, please do not discuss it in any official MythTV IRC channel, mailing list, or other venue. We have no idea who is watching and what conclusions they may draw from your actions. Failure to abide by this rule may result in a permanent ban.

Softcam

Specifically, the use of softcam to decrypt DVB signals or for card sharing is not a welcome topic in any official MythTV IRC channel, mailing list, or other venue. This is due to it being a potential DMCA (legal) violation in the USA and a violation of the Terms and Conditions for almost every service provider no matter where you live. As the main developers of MythTV are in the USA, we must respect their wishes, and keep the legal stink off MythTV caused by these potential DMCA violations. If you wish to discuss the use of softcam, do it elsewhere. You will be kicked and may be permanently banned should you persist. You have been warned.

Linking

We don't mind our users linking to sites to help people, but we do mind linking to potentially copyrighted content. If it's not explicitly marked as free to share, please do not link to it. This includes shows on youtube or other video sharing networks.

Terms of Service / Acceptable Use Violations

We do not tolerate discussions of violating the Terms of Service (ToS) or Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) or similar policies of other sites. If a topic of discussion comes up that seems to be infringing on the ToS/AUP of a third-party site, the discussion must be taken off the IRC channels.

The reasoning for this is that we do not desire MythTV to be viewed as a project that is promoting nefarious or unethical use of other sites resources. There are potential legal ramifications to this, and the developers do *NOT* support these violations, and do not wish the project to be tainted with the image that these violations bring with them.

In particular, discussion of violating the ToS of TMS/Zap2it or Microsoft's MCE data service (which is derived from TMS data) or any other online source of TMS-derived scheduling data is not tolerated. For this scheduling data, we use Schedules Direct (at a very reasonable cost to the end user) which legally licenses this data, and do not tolerate discussion of obtaining this scheduling data outside of this method.